In the fabrication of integrated circuits, an ongoing goal is to produce devices which are increasingly smaller. Currently, it is common to fabricate devices which have elements which are only a fraction of a micron in size.
One of the problems which limit fabrication processes and severely hinder yields is due to contamination. Unwanted particles can contaminate wafers in many ways including through human contact, unpure processing chemicals and through the process equipment. These unwanted contaminants may become embedded in the wafer and create unwanted electrical characteristics or may interfere with the photolithographic masking steps thereby reducing production yields.
Steps are presently being taken to reduce to number of particles which may contaminate a semiconductor wafer. Great expense is invested in building clean rooms which have superior ventilation and therefore reduce the number of particles which may contaminate devices. However, contamination remains a problem. Accordingly, improvements which overcome any or all of the contamination problems are presently desirable.